An Important Update from Tuktuk Lancaster
February 13, 2018
Owners to pull plug on tuktuk tours
(Lancaster, Pa.)
Citing red tape, lack of sponsors, and ballooning insurance costs, Timm and Kristina Wenger announced today that they will not be continuing Lancaster’s tuktuk sightseeing tours in the upcoming season.
The Wengers started Tuktuk Lancaster in 2017, offering sightseeing and food tours of Lancaster City in a bright red, open-air, three-wheeled electric vehicle known as a tuktuk. The fast-paced tours, led by Timm and two other drivers, featured stories and facts about the history, things to do, and the people of the city. The tuktuk experience earned five-star overall ratings on Facebook and TripAdvisor.
Red tape
Last year’s inaugural season got off to a delayed start because of what LNP called “bureaucratic nonsense” (LNP article, July 19, 2017) with the Public Utility Commission. It’s a long story, which Timm summarizes as, “The bottom line was that the PUC staff gave us faulty information by telling us we needed a license for our services, so we applied. After dragging out the process for half a year, they denied our application. The community rallied and raised the funds needed to hire a lawyer who provided the information needed for the PUC to determine that we didn’t need a license to offer tours.” The delays put the company in a difficult financial position by the end the year.
Lack of sponsors
Before the 2017 season ended, the Wengers started lining up sponsors for 2018. The sponsorship options include perks such as a business’s logo on the vehicle, naming rights for tours, and complimentary tickets. While most of the first season’s sponsors signed on again, the Wengers were not able to pick up any new major sponsors.
Skyrocketing insurance costs
On the day after Christmas the Wengers received notice that the company that provided insurance for the vehicle will not renew coverage. The insurer disclosed that they do not actually insure three-wheeled vehicles, but had honored their coverage, which they had mistakenly issued, for the first year. This coverage expires on March 7. To get similar coverage now from the only remaining tutkuk insurer will cost more than four times what they had been paying. “A business this size, with the financial realities of our first season and lack of sponsors, can’t absorb a $10,000-plus per year increase.”
What next?
“If we were to get enough new sponsors in the next few days, we would reconsider our decision to close,” says Timm. Details outlining the sponsorship levels, starting at $375, and related perks, are posted at tuktuklancaster.com. “We invite business owners who see the tuktuk tours as an asset to the Lancaster City community to consider sponsoring us, and to contact us by Friday.”
Barring enough last-minute new sponsorships to cover the funding gap, the Wengers will need to sell the tuktuk. They will issue refunds for the current sponsors and individuals who pre-purchased tickets or bought gift certificates for the 2018 season.
The Wengers are exploring new ways of offering sightseeing and food tours by means other than a tuktuk.Taste the World, the walking and sampling tours of downtown that they have organized since 2009, will continue.
Gratitude
The Wengers offered this message in an email and on social media, “We thank the community (especially those who contributed during the initial crowdfunding and donated toward the red tape legal fees), the riders who joined us in this experience, our drivers Jon and Laura for showing the best of our town, our sponsors, and our families, for the support that enabled us to provide a fun and educational service to Lancaster City. Despite the difficulties, we have grown to love our city even more than we did before, and we are thankful for this experience. It has been a great ride!”
Owners to pull plug on tuktuk tours
(Lancaster, Pa.)
Citing red tape, lack of sponsors, and ballooning insurance costs, Timm and Kristina Wenger announced today that they will not be continuing Lancaster’s tuktuk sightseeing tours in the upcoming season.
The Wengers started Tuktuk Lancaster in 2017, offering sightseeing and food tours of Lancaster City in a bright red, open-air, three-wheeled electric vehicle known as a tuktuk. The fast-paced tours, led by Timm and two other drivers, featured stories and facts about the history, things to do, and the people of the city. The tuktuk experience earned five-star overall ratings on Facebook and TripAdvisor.
Red tape
Last year’s inaugural season got off to a delayed start because of what LNP called “bureaucratic nonsense” (LNP article, July 19, 2017) with the Public Utility Commission. It’s a long story, which Timm summarizes as, “The bottom line was that the PUC staff gave us faulty information by telling us we needed a license for our services, so we applied. After dragging out the process for half a year, they denied our application. The community rallied and raised the funds needed to hire a lawyer who provided the information needed for the PUC to determine that we didn’t need a license to offer tours.” The delays put the company in a difficult financial position by the end the year.
Lack of sponsors
Before the 2017 season ended, the Wengers started lining up sponsors for 2018. The sponsorship options include perks such as a business’s logo on the vehicle, naming rights for tours, and complimentary tickets. While most of the first season’s sponsors signed on again, the Wengers were not able to pick up any new major sponsors.
Skyrocketing insurance costs
On the day after Christmas the Wengers received notice that the company that provided insurance for the vehicle will not renew coverage. The insurer disclosed that they do not actually insure three-wheeled vehicles, but had honored their coverage, which they had mistakenly issued, for the first year. This coverage expires on March 7. To get similar coverage now from the only remaining tutkuk insurer will cost more than four times what they had been paying. “A business this size, with the financial realities of our first season and lack of sponsors, can’t absorb a $10,000-plus per year increase.”
What next?
“If we were to get enough new sponsors in the next few days, we would reconsider our decision to close,” says Timm. Details outlining the sponsorship levels, starting at $375, and related perks, are posted at tuktuklancaster.com. “We invite business owners who see the tuktuk tours as an asset to the Lancaster City community to consider sponsoring us, and to contact us by Friday.”
Barring enough last-minute new sponsorships to cover the funding gap, the Wengers will need to sell the tuktuk. They will issue refunds for the current sponsors and individuals who pre-purchased tickets or bought gift certificates for the 2018 season.
The Wengers are exploring new ways of offering sightseeing and food tours by means other than a tuktuk.Taste the World, the walking and sampling tours of downtown that they have organized since 2009, will continue.
Gratitude
The Wengers offered this message in an email and on social media, “We thank the community (especially those who contributed during the initial crowdfunding and donated toward the red tape legal fees), the riders who joined us in this experience, our drivers Jon and Laura for showing the best of our town, our sponsors, and our families, for the support that enabled us to provide a fun and educational service to Lancaster City. Despite the difficulties, we have grown to love our city even more than we did before, and we are thankful for this experience. It has been a great ride!”
